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Alex Txikon sets off on last Everest attempt

The Everest winter expedition led by Alex Txikon is now in its final phase: after having reorganised the expedition and waited for several weeks, the Basque mountaineer along with several Sherpa has now reached Camp 2 and is about to begin his final bid for the summit.

On reaching Base Camp Txikon then had to involuntarily and temporarily abandon his attempt as all the members of his expedition had been called back to Kathmandu, and Txikon had to regroup in a rush in order to keep his dream alive. Two weeks later, the 35 year-old returned to Base Camp by helicopter, accompanied this time by Nuri Sherpa, five new Sherpa and two "Icefall Doctors”. In late February the climbers managed to find their way through the Icefall labyrinth and set foot on the mountain proper.

While waiting for the weather window, Txikon received a visit from Reinhold Messner, one of the world’s foremost experts about climbing without supplementary oxygen: in 1978 the South Tyrolean, together with Austria’s Peter Habeler, became the first person in the world to climb Everest without supplementary oxygen. Theirs was a revolutionary climb that defied all medical and scientific logic of that era. Just two years later Messner again changed the face of mountaineering with his audacious first ascent of a new route up Everest, in complete solitude over four days up the mountain’s North Face, once again without 02. A climb defined as one of the most astounding feats in mountaineering history.

Motivated by Messner’s visit, Txikon has now set off once again for that same 8848m high summit. Yesterday he reached Camp 2, where, after resting night, he planned to leave with Nuri Sherpa, supported by German, Temba, Sanu and Pasang Nurbu. Before setting off Txikon had stated "Until now, the wind does not stop and hit us hard, but the mere fact of having the opportunity to try, pushes us forward.Fingers crossed. I need you more than ever to be with me. Let's go for the last attempt!"